That Next Step
by potat lasaro
Summary: He had seen it all come crashing down around him. From being on equal ground with his classmates to now trailing behind them, Ritchie began to question if he had made the right choice. Now with a life altering decision before him, he must decide if he wants to take it or not.


**Welcome back to the second one-shot. This one is a little more important than the previous one, having Ritchie be the focus of it. And just a reminder, the first chapter of Lessons will be up December 5** **th** **.**

 **That Next Step**

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 _I want you to come here as a student._

 _I see a young, prosperous student who isn't growing to his potential._

 _If you came here, you'd flourish under our tutelage and harness all your inert potential._

Blaine's words floated through Ritchie's mind as he entered his dorm room. Looking around, it appeared that his roommate had already left for the semester break; the entrance way barren of any signs of someone living there. Making his way down the short hallway, Ritchie entered his room and tossed his belongings onto his bed. Sitting down on the piece of furniture he quickly rummaged through his bag and pulled out his papers that were due by today.

"I don't want to forget these, otherwise everything we went through would be for nothing," he muttered, Sparky rolling into a ball atop his pillows. The young boy cast a smile towards his sleeping friend, the duo having gone through quite the adventure on Cinnabar Island over the past week. In fact, Ritchie felt that when it came to stories about everyone's week, his was probably going to be the craziest of them all. A few papers then slipped out from the others, Ritchie noticing that it was the transfer application for Cinnabar University; the boy immediately remembering how Blaine handed it to him prior to his ship leaving the port. He had been in such a hurry after the previous day's events that he never had time to give the older man an exact answer.

Sighing, the boy reached for a remote that sat at the edge of his nightstand and turned his television on. He wanted to clear his mind before making any decisions, especially one of this magnitude. While he believed in what Blaine told him regarding his potential being wasted, the young student wasn't so sure he wanted to leave his friends behind. It wouldn't just be a new school for him, he would have to make all new friends and get used to the area as well as the added work from being enrolled in two courses. Flipping through the channels, the boy began to turn the volume up as a news report caught his attention.

On the screen appeared to be the Legendary Pokémon Zapdos, but what really caught his attention was everything else happening in the video. Down beneath the raging Titan seemed to be Ash, Mayaka and a few others he didn't recognize that well. And they seemed to be fighting against Zapdos.

"I guess my story isn't that special anymore..." he moaned out, a feeling of jealousy stinging him in the chest. He wasn't sure what caused the sensation, but seeing his one moment of being special be ripped from him definitely hurt. Watching the video, his eyes widened as Pikachu released the same attack he had used against Mayaka at the Class Battle, but this time it was larger. The sphere making Ritchie wonder just how strong those two could become if they learned to harness and control such an attack.

"And there you have it, everyone. This video was taken by one of the many witnesses to last night's rampage by the Legendary Pokémon Zapdos. Join us later tonight to see full coverage of the event along with a press conference held by the man who led the assault against this raging beast, the Vermilion City Gym Leader: Lieutenant Surge. Everyone in the city was for sure fortunate to have him and those other trainers there to keep the damage to a minimum, that's for sure," the news reporter stated before the coverage changed to the news of an upcoming meeting regarding the Silph Company. Stuck in a trance, Ritchie watched the screen, his mind focusing on the clips of Ash and Pikachu against Zapdos even after the segment had ended.

The boy who was in a lower class than him had already outclassed him in skill. Their rivalry was probably nothing to Ash considering how the boy handled himself in comparison to Ritchie's own failures. They entered on equal footing, but it was Ash who surprised him rather easily after the first few months at school. Not only did Ash stand tall against a Legendary Pokémon, but his final attack seemed to quell the beast while Ritchie couldn't even put up a fight against two trainers. The difference in strength was incredible, the boy staring at the transfer papers resting on his floor. Sighing at his shortcomings, Ritchie shut the television off before picking the papers off the ground.

 _If you came here, you'd flourish under our tutelage and harness all your inert potential._

Blaine's statement rang through his ears again, the boy looking at Sparky for some sort of comfort, but nothing came from his best friend. That was to be expected from the sleeping Electric-Type. Holding the papers in his grip, Ritchie narrowed his eyesight onto them, starting to believe they were his best option after the latest news.

"Sparky, I wish you were awake. I don't want to make this decision on my own...but if I have to..." Ritchie mumbled, running a hand along his best friend's back. The action seemed to startle the sleeping creature slightly, his body shaking before coming to a rest. Falling backwards, Ritchie laid across his bed as items fell from the piece of furniture. Memories of his time at Pokémon Academy ran through his head, from meeting Ash to getting picked by Blaine to go and study under him for his internship. Though not everything was bad, he knew that the events were going to help him grow into a strong trainer one day...and yet he couldn't help but feel angry at his uselessness. A smile formed on his face as he thought about meeting Ash and his Pikachu for the first time, but it was quickly dashed.

Despite everything he learned in class, all the techniques and strategies, the hours of studying, even the extra training he had put in on his own, he felt like he was stuck in neutral. He came to the school as the strongest student from his hometown, and yet that was nothing here. He was just another kid trying to be a professional trainer here. His friends had clearly surpassed him and by the end of the semester the classes had offered little help to him. If he had to pinpoint where things went south, Ritchie could easily choose the Class Battle.

Unable to get a single elimination on his own, the young student had begun to question his skills. The others had told him it wasn't his fault Thad caught them by surprise, and yet, maybe if he had trained a bit more he would have held his own against the crazed student. He was supposed to put his town on the map not struggle in just his first semester. He figured a time like this would happen eventually, but he hadn't expected it so soon. He was at a crossroads, stay here with his friends and fade into obscurity or go somewhere else and make a name for himself. Thad had opened his eyes to how much more he had to learn and his beating at Cinnabar Island only enforced those negative thoughts about his skills. Pulling his cap down, Ritchie covered his eyes before chuckling out of self-pity.

Clearing his mind of those events, he heard Blaine's words once more. Even Assunta's words from before he left entered his mind.

 _It may not seem it now, but sometimes you need to make a decision and not look back. I wasn't certain I would enjoy Cinnabar University at first but now I've grown in ways I never could have at Cerulean University. Blaine knows how to help us manifest our true potential. Sometimes you just make a wrong decision when it comes to a school, and sometimes you have to just move on from it._

If what she said was true (and if Blaine's statement regarding her skills were true), then perhaps he too would flourish under that style of teaching. And besides, he wanted to be the best! He wouldn't be able to reach that goal by moping around his dorm room all day. Whipping his hat against the room, Ritchie jumped from his bed (the action waking Sparky) and reached for a pen. Leaning against his desk, Ritchie filled the forms out.

"Sparky, I think it's time we start a new chapter on our adventure. I'll miss this place; that's for certain. The teachers, our friends...it'll be strange without them, but we'll always see them again. Not everything here has been bad, but we have to do what's best for us." Filling the final bits of the forms out, Ritchie felt his nerves acting up. It was as if they were telling him to play it safe and stay where he was comfortable, to not rock the boat when it came to his schooling. Taking a deep breath, he buried those feeling deep within himself before signing his name.

"Pipi?" Sparky asked, peering at the papers on the desk. The Electric-Type seemed interested in them so Ritchie slid them closer, the ink now drying.

"Yep. Just signed it, buddy. Though we just started the process, by the time next semester starts we'll be attending Cinnabar University! And the next time we see Ash and his Pikachu, we'll give them a battle worthy of us being rivals!"

Grabbing the application, Ritchie placed it within an envelope on his desk. Sealing it shut, he shared a smile with his best friend as they hurried back into the hallway of their dorm room. He could only imagine what his teacher and the school would say, but those thoughts didn't worry him. Instead, all he could think of was what it would be like at Cinnabar University and all the new challenges they would overcome together. It was time they started down a new path towards their goal.

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 **A little shorter than the last one-shot but I'd argue it was much more important. The reason for this was mainly due to the fact I wanted to show what Ritchie's decision was regarding Cinnabar Island and what led him to choose that decision. And yet, I couldn't find a spot in the last chapter of Beginnings or the first chapter of Lessons without it feeling forced in there. So instead it became its own, small one-shot. Hopefully you enjoyed it.**

 **There will be nothing uploaded next week and then we start back up with Lessons.**

 **Thank you to everyone who read the chapter and supports this story. Please leave a review letting me know what you enjoyed and how I can improve the story.**


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